


Nowhere Warm

by LegolassieMalfoy



Series: Target Heart [2]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Aftermath of Torture, Angst and Feels, Angst and Tragedy, Canon Disabled Character, Canonical Character Death, Character Death, Clint Feels, Death, Decomposition (briefly mentioned), F/M, Family Drama, Family Tragedy, Feels, Implied/Referenced Torture, Tragedy, Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-07
Updated: 2015-05-07
Packaged: 2018-03-29 10:55:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,627
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3893773
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LegolassieMalfoy/pseuds/LegolassieMalfoy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When all that is held close is lost.   How would a heart survive.  </p><p> </p><p>((This is the follow up to 'Silent Noise'. It leads directly on from that story. Warnings for violence, death, character death, brief mentions of decomposing, tragedy, drama. Spoiler warnings for 'Avengers - Age of Ultron' ))</p>
            </blockquote>





	Nowhere Warm

“You have heart.”

 

A small statement uttered before the blue flash of dominance took over. No will, no power to fight or to stop. A puppet for Loki, the Trickster God’s games. Under Loki’s total influence, Agent Clint Barton became responsible for many deaths. His inner anguish grew as he battled that omnipotent shroud that preventing him gaining his independence again. Clint was compromised. Loki tore back layers of his mind to access SHIELD records, strategies, information and defences. Everything he knew the God would gain in moments. 

“You have heart.”

 

He had been freed by the chains of Loki’s possession. The evil malevolence bashed out of him by his closest friend, Agent Natalia ‘Natasha’ Romanoff. He fought alongside her and a strong team of Avengers against an alien invasion spearheaded by Loki. When they had won he thought his battle was over, that he could be happy. He could feel forgiveness for the deaths by his hands. He was mistaken. He had been compromised deeper than he had anticipated. 

“You have heart.”

 

Rough hands clawed at him, at his body. Beating him down, knocking him senseless. Pain became a constant shrill as he was dragged battling from his home. Clint held a secret, one that he was determined to keep safe at all costs. One that enveloped the whole of his heart. The possession had revealed to Loki more than just blueprints. It had shown him the one thing that Clint would protect above all else, his family. In his last ditch attempt to overthrow the Avengers Loki had detailed what he had learnt to some of the other turncoats in his puppet army of SHIELD employees. Some of those turned out to be HYDRA operatives. Who had been working within the organization’s core to corrupt it from within. Under the guise of a Black Ops unit these HYDRA agents had tracked Clint down to his home. 

The idyllic farm had become everything to Clint. It held warmth, love, happiness and peace. Away from all the danger of his work he found it a perfect solace. Once belonged to his father it now belonged to him and housed all that he held most precious. A beautiful wife who adored him and three children that were his future. He had built up prefect memories here as well as reshaped its physical structure with his dexterous hands. Everything private he had poured into this. It was his home, his very soul. 

Pictures smashed, furniture tossed asunder as the operatives ransacked through the main house. Clint had been grabbed first as he had come indoors from working outside. Rough hands had yanked his head back and dragged him through the lounge by his hair. As he felt blows to his body he heard his wife Laura’s screams. He tried to shout for her to take the kids and run but to no avail. The operatives had already captured them. On the very edge of his vision he could see them being dragged off to other parts of the house. He fought his assailants but their beating had been too severe. He struggled to remain conscious as chaos rained around him. 

“You have heart.”

 

Clint gasped trying to breath. The pressure against his body closing in. He felt himself drift as tendrils of his waking mind feathered against him. There was an eerie silence, one that cocooned him. Time seemed frozen around him. His body floated wrapped in what felt like water. Was he drowning? He wasn't sure. Is this what it felt like to die? His thoughts questioned as his body twisted in the darkness. There was no sense of belonging. There was no concept of time. He felt off worldly somehow. His body was utterly crushed yet he felt no pain. As he ascended upward he felt the strangest overwhelming calm. This wasn't right. He shouldn't be here, not yet. He opened his mouth, fighting to speak. He called out his wife’s and kids names. He wasn't gifted with any answer. His body grew cold as he suddenly felt utterly alone. He was nowhere warm and it frightened him. 

Darkness ebbed away as Clint returned to consciousness. The simple room span as he tried to regain his equilibrium. He had no concept of how long he had been unconscious for. He was just aware that he had been badly beaten and captured. His body began to registrar all the injuries. His nerves felt on fire as he tried to sit up. He was aware of his own dried blood that formed from various deep wounds. All of that faded when he realised one thing, he couldn’t hear a thing. 

He panicked and tried to calm his breathing. The disconcerting pounding of his heart rate throughout his body threw him. He couldn’t hear it but he could really feel it as it shook throughout his body. He managed to sit up and lean against a wall. He felt the bare stone through his blood soaked shirt to his back. He shivered and then reluctantly lifted a hand to his ear. His fingers grazed across damaged puckered skin. He realised that both his ears were similar. He grunted out swear words. He then suddenly stopped when he couldn’t hear himself speak. He closed his eyes trying to break himself from this nightmare. It was no nightmare, this was very real. He had been captured, beaten up and left deaf. He looked around the small room and began to lose all conscious again. 

“You have heart.”

 

Clint had been rescued but his hearing was gone. He was unaware the full extent of the damage until he felt something. A vibration was felt in his pocket and he looked down. It was his phone. An email, top priority had come through. No, everything wasn't fine. Nothing was going to be the same again. He remembered what had happened and without a second though made his way to his farm home. 

A burnt out husk was what left of his stable. Corpses of livestock littered the once lush fields. Now they were dulled, tainted with blood. His fingers traced along damaged ears of corn as he stumbled through the obliterated field. His eyes then turned to the main house. The cloak of dread wrapped around him as he spotted scorch marks along the outside. The door and windows broken and blackened from what looked like fire damage. Heart pounding he rushed up to the house fearing the worst. 

The putrid stink of ash, dried blood and rotting wood smothered him as he entered the main room. Nothing looked as it did. Everything had been demolished. Evidence of his own struggle was still visible. Streaks of dried blood ran all over the floor and walls. The congealed substance had penetrated the wood and had made it decay. As he moved through the house he could pick up another smell. One that perforated the air and made him nauseous. The unmistakable scent of death. 

He gripped the wall steadying himself as staggered through the ruins of his life. He swallowed hard as he felt his throat dry up in complete fear. His worst nightmare unfolding before his eyes as he made his way into the kitchen. The room was just as destroyed as the rest. Move blood decorated the walls and table. There had been a big struggle here. He looked down on the floor and spotted something shining. He dropped down and picked up the broken remnants of Laura’s favourite necklace. He could tell that it had been torn off her and grew worried as to where she was. He stood up and became aware that the stench was emanating from upstairs. Without a second thought he bolted upstairs crying out his wife’s name. 

He charged into their bedroom. A room once filled with laughter. They would lock themselves away from the world and show their love to each other. Now it was cold, dark, not unlike a mausoleum. He then slammed his body against the nearby wall at the sight that lay before him. A meek cry escaped his lips as his beautiful wife lay across their bed. Her lifeless milky eyes staring back at him. Her once stunning face torn apart with deep cuts. Clint approached her lifeless broken form shattered by the destruction around him. His own mouth gaped open in shock as he held out a shaking hand towards her. Her dried blood seeped a dark crimson pool that had surrounded her. She had been beaten, tortured and tormented. Clint’s face screwed up in unhinged despair as he tried not to picture her horrific final moments. His fingers brushed her silky hair that was now caked in dried blood. He stroked a gentle tentative hand down her still face. His thumb ghosting her lips. Her warm welcoming glow now replaced with marbled broken down skin. He took hold of her lifeless delicate hand. His finger traced the gold wedding band that he had given her. He choked back on his own tears as he tried to hold her. His body now wracked with sobs as he lay down beside her. As he moved he spotted over the other side of the room more desolation. The destroyed still bodies of his children. Lifeless empty shells who had barely begin to live. They would never come to hug him again. He would never get to see them grow up, to fall in love themselves. Their tiny frames deformed and shattered. Jagged injuries marked their once innocent features. Upon seeing them he completely fell apart. His whole world caved in around him. Everything was completely utterly lost. He screamed out it absolute grief as his heart broke before the world. 

“You had heart.”

**Author's Note:**

> ((Endnote - This was one of the toughest pieces to write. Before anyone mentions it I'm not a hater of Clint's family. In fact, I really loved them in 'Age of Ultron' which made me have second thoughts writing this story. Plus, Linda Cardellini is a lovely actress. For my roleplay version of Clint (named Jeremy C Barton to save on confusion). I had always planned for his family to die ever since I read that they had in 'Ultimates'. I had planned to write this story at some point but decided to hold off until I knew which direction the character was going in MCU. I knew that MCU Clint was partly based on the Ultimates so did research the storyline when I created this character. I did debate leaving the family alive but then felt it wouldn't work with the direction I was taking the character so I went with continuing my original plan. 
> 
> While I was writing this I was inspired by two pieces of music. Both by Kate Havnevik. Both featured in 'Grey's Anatomy'. 
> 
> The song 'Grace'. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kWQywgdW8oI 
> 
> The song 'Nowhere Warm' Which also inspired the title of the story. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FA052fY2ehw ))


End file.
